Courtesy of Judith Gregg Librarian Catherine Arbogast heads out with a personalized book delivery from the Los Altos main library.

Love of learning and curiosity about the world sometimes grow only more urgent as a person spends more and more time at home, limited by age, health condition, or both. Librarians head out from the Los Altos main l...

Already known as an innovator in the tech field, Google Inc. is now moving in on the art world.

The Mountain View-based company July 11 launched the “Paint the Town” contest, a “moving art experiment” that invites California residents over the age of 13 to submit physical or digital artwork that would decorate the door...

Traci Newell/Town Crier The six-week, tuition-free Stretch to Kindergarten program, hosted at Bullis Charter School, serves children who have not attended preschool. A teacher leads children in singing about the parts of a butterfly, above.

courtesy of Rishi Bommannan Rishi Bommannan cycled from Bates College in Maine to his home in Los Altos Hills, taking several selfies along the way. He also raised nearly $13,000 for the Livestrong Foundation, which supports cancer patients.

The Town Crier’s recent article on coyotes venturing down from the foothills in search of sustenance referenced the organization Project Coyote (“Recent coyote attacks keep residents on edge,” July 1). Do not waste your time contac...

Photos by Alicia Castro/Town Crier Local residents participate in an exercise class at the Grant Park Senior Center, above. Betsy Reeves, below left with Gail Enenstein, lobbied for senior programming in south Los Altos.

Grace Wilson Franks, our beloved mother and grandmother, left us peacefully on July 16, 2015 just a few weeks short of her 92nd birthday. She was born to Ross and Florence (Cruzan) Wilson in rural Tulare, California on Septem...

Most of us have a place inside our hearts and minds that occasionally causes us trouble. For some, it is sadness, depression or despair. For others, it may be fear, anger, resentment or myriad other emotional “dark places” that at times seem to hij...

The Morning Forum of Los Altos opened its 64th season last week with a discussion on immigration reform.

Maria Echaveste, former deputy chief of staff to President Bill Clinton, addressed “Growing Hispanic Influence: What Happens to Immigration Reform?” in her Sept. 17 appearance.

Echaveste began with a question: Who are the Hispanics and how are they defined? They can hardly be defined by their countries of origin, she said, because they come from so many different countries and their racial makeup, too, is varied.

There are great generational gaps, according to Echaveste.Linguistically, they may not be Spanish-speaking at all. By the third generation in the U.S., only 5 percent can still speak Spanish. As to their race, based on the U.S. Census, 50 percent list themselves as “Mixed” Caucasian, 47 percent “Other.” Geographically, they are scattered throughout the country.

Since the founding of the U.S., Echaveste said, the burning questions have included who will be part of it, and who gets to come in? Benjamin Franklin, she noted, was very much opposed to German immigrants.

Generally, people find languages they aren’t familiar with frightening, she said.

The influence of Hispanics is large and growing, said Echaveste, one of the highest-ranking Latinas to serve in a presidential administration. Today, salsa sales are more prevalent than ketchup sales.

Politically, Latinos also vary, Echaveste said, particularly in three states: Texas, Florida and California. Texas has such deep roots with Mexico that Hispanics are very involved, especially on a conservative level.

California is more progressive in dealing with immigration, she noted, but still many Hispanics are poorer, generally less well-educated and question the value of participating in the democratic process because of the corruption in their countries of origin.

The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 set entry quotas for each country, Echaveste said, “but there will always be people looking for a better life.”

Because not many can enter the U.S. legally, there will always be an influx of illegal immigrants – hence the need for new immigration laws. As administrator of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division from 1993 to 1997, Echaveste said she recognizes the need to protect American wages that immigration policies can affect.

Echaveste said that undocumented workers need to learn English and more about the U.S. And, she emphasized, legalization should occur only after a period of time has passed.

The Morning Forum of Los Altos is a members-only lecture series that meets at Los Altos United Methodist Church. For membership details and more information, visit morningforum.org.

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